Principle of sebumeter, which is an equipment used to measure product performance of skin and hair care products.

1. Presented by: Facilitated to:
Mr. L. Sanathoiba Singha
Reg. No. 18PA005
M. Pharm 2nd Semester
Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis.
Dr. Chandanam Sreedhar
Head of Department
Department of Pharmaceutical Analysis.
A presentation on
Karnataka College of Pharmacy
Bengaluru-64, Karnataka.
1
principle of sebumeter, an equipment
used to measure product performance of skin and hair
care products
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2. INTRODUCTION
• Excess oiliness or excess dryness affects cosmetic appearance of the skin.
• Hence, estimation of oiliness is important to decide
on the correct regimen to achieve cosmesis.
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3. • Sebum is an oily secretion from the sebaceous gland.
• Sebum waterproofs and lubricates the skin and hair of mammals.
• Sebum affects the permeability of skin and absorptivity of
water.
• Protects skin against bacteria, fungi.
• Limits evaporation, permeation of pharmaceutical preparation
and other active and non-active substances.
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Sebum

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• Sebaceous glands often go into overdrive during
puberty, and the excess sebum can cause oily skin,
odors, and acne.
• There are a number of disorders associated with sebum
and the sebaceous glands.
• Hence measurement of natural presence of
sebum is of particular interest to dermatologists
and cosmeticians.

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• Swabbing by pads soaked in organic solvents such as hexane or ether.
• Washing lipid solvents over areas of skin circumscribed by rings or caps.
• Placing a pad of absorbent cigarette papers for on the skin surface and then extracting the
sebum with diethyl ether.
• Sebumeter
METHODS TO MEASURE SEBUM

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• Sebumeter is a device by which sebum can be quantified from any area of skin in an objective
manner.
• It was invented by Antoine Kawam, who patented it in the year 1992.
SebumETER

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Audio visual sample of a sebumeter in operation

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Sebumeter Probe (Cassette)
• The measuring head of the cassette exposes a 64 mm
measuring section of the tape.
• For a measurement the tape is transported forward by a
trigger at the side of the cassette to expose a new section
of the tape. The used tape is rewound inside the cassette.
• One cassette can be used for approx. 450 measurements.
• The scale from 1-0 on the trigger shows how much of
the tape is still unused.
• For hygienic reasons when exhausted, the cassette is
simply replaced.
• A spring in the measuring head provides constant pressure on the skin. Its low weight makes
handling easy.
• The instrument has an accuracy of ±5%.
• The reading of sebum may be displayed as a number or as type of skin i.e. dry; dry/normal;
normal; normal/oily; oily.

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Mechanism of sebum measurement by sebumeter
• It is based on the principle that when sebum is deposited
on a translucent element, such as a frosted glass or plastic
plate or strip, the element becomes increasingly
transparent.
• Greater the amount of sebum applied, the greater is the
transparency produced.
• The measuring head of the cassette with its special tape
is placed on the skin.
• It is then inserted into a slot of the device.
• Light passing through this sebum covered translucent
element is then measured using a photoelectric receiver.
• A microprocessor calculates the result, which is shown
on the display in mg sebum/cm2 of the skin.

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• Pande, S. Y and Misri R. Sebumeter. Indian J Dermatol Veneral Leprol. 2005: 71 (6). 444-446.
reference

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